UK and UAE Take Steps in Joint Efforts to Combat Money Laundering

In the UAE-UK Partnership to Tackle Illicit Financial Flows, the two countries are in talks about ways to prevent money laundering and other organized crime.

The UAE and the UK have advanced their joint efforts to curb money laundering and improve the understanding of mutual illicit financing risks and threats.

The two countries held a series of technical workshops last month in Abu Dhabi and London. In the workshops, information was shared regarding the issues of mutual concern and how to enable participants to better understand illicit finance risks, threats, and typologies.

Experts from both the UK and UAE discussed a variety of key points, like identifying money laundering threats and vulnerabilities in the two countries and detecting organized financial crime groups involved in money laundering to tackle high-risk and complex illicit finance tactics. 

Moreover, both sides also discussed the actions to be taken against emerging illicit finance trends such as schemes involving virtual assets, Financial Intelligence Unit priorities, responsibilities, best practices, public-private partnerships, and raising awareness within the private sector and law enforcement approaches to illicit finance.

Directors of the workstreams under the partnership from the UAE side, Mohamed Shalo of the Executive Office for Anti Money Laundering and Counter-Terrorism Financing; and Huda Belhoul of the Federal Immigration, Citizenship, Customs, and Port Security Authority, said: “The UAE continues to take strong and effective action against illicit finance.”

“The workshops held under the UAE-UK Partnership to Tackle Illicit Financial Flows are emblematic of both countries’ collaborative efforts to protect the financial system and disrupt terrorists, money launderers, and organized crime groups.”

“We are grateful to the UK authorities who participated in the joint workshops and are resolute in advancing our shared priorities to fight this global problem.”

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